Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member, commenting on Sadiq Khan’s description of the previous Mayor’s ‘Concordat’ scheme to supposedly stop developers advertising London homes abroad first for overseas buyers as ‘toothless’ said:
“Sadiq Khan is absolutely right to criticise the weak measures adopted by the previous Mayor.
Writing for Liberal Democrat Voice, Caroline Pidgeon described the role of the EU's European Investment Bank in funding British public infrastructure projects:
I was first alerted to how significant its lending was when I read the papers going to the Transport for London (TfL) Board last September. I discovered TfL had entered into a new £1 billion corporate loan with the EIB to support investment in a number of projects, including station upgrades, track renewals and cycle superhighways.
The London Assembly has agreed a motion asking the Mayor to commission research into the effects of overseas investment on the London housing market.
With London property continuing to attract foreign buyers, Members determined that the Mayor now has a duty to analyse what impact this investment has on the price, affordability and supply of homes across the capital.
Caroline Pidgeon MBE AM, who proposed the motion said:
“To ensure we have the right policies in place to tackle London’s housing challenges we must first have a full understanding of the real impact that overseas investment is having on the price, affordability and supply of homes for Londoners.
At City Hall the new Mayor of London was grilled by the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon over his level of support for extending Tramlink to Sutton.
In responding to her questions the Mayor stated he backed the scheme and was ‘keen to get Tramlink extended.” He also admitted that Sutton has an “appalling” lack of public transport and that for too long transport connections to Sutton have been neglected.
Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Caroline Pidgeon, commenting on the Mayor’s announcement over his future plans for transport fares, said:
“Sadiq Khan’s manifesto specifically said that Londoners won’t pay a penny more for their travel in 2020 than they do today. There were no ifs, or buts, in that statement.
“The reality is that many Londoners will see their travelcards rise over the next few years. What we have found out today feels like a very early broken promise from London’s new Mayor.